# That 70s Show discussion thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 3, 2014, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740 "2014-03-03T09:07:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/21 "2014-03-04T02:21:11Z")
Here in the northwest corner of the US, we have a chain of stores called Fred Meyer. A few years ago, they started what I think a BRILLIANT;) holiday campaign with “Snowmom”. This is an ad from last Christmas: I wasn't thinking Fred Meyer or Christmas when I saw my first one, I was thinking, "OMG!! OMG! It's Kitty Forman!!" :D My favorite episode was when Grandma died (played by Happy Days’ Marion Ross). ---
**Author:** ![Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynhildr_Budladottir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/22 "2014-03-04T04:17:03Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > No, they were going there to smoke weed, nail the girls and avoid adults. Like every other episode. PLEASE TRY TO KEEP UP! 😃 Oh, you’re the OP. :smack: You’re at least partially right. As Jackie arranged it I think the trip (in her mind) was more for bonding in the gang. The boys came along so they could smoke and keep “the stash” out of the hands of the adults and Eric and Donna came along for an opportunity to spend more time together. I’m also certain that Jackie wanted to spend more time with Donna too. Also, anyone noticed how abusive Jackie and Kelso’s relationship is? ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/23 "2014-03-04T04:17:50Z")
I think Marion Ross enjoyed playing a bitch on that. There was an episode of Roseanne where many TV moms made an appearance. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/24 "2014-03-04T05:09:30Z")
> [@Morwen Edhelwen](#): > > So what exactly was innacurate about it? I’d love to know 🙂 Admittedly, I haven’t watched it since it was new, so this is just memory, but my impression of it was first that it wasn’t a representation of 1976 (isn’t that when season 1 was?) but more like the 1980s. Nothing specific, more subtle, like attitudes, minor details, patterns of speech, incorrect slang. Second it seemed more like Hollywood’s idea of Wisconsin than an accurate representation. Like the ‘accurate’ recreation of Old New York in _Futurama_, but not as ridiculously over the top. Like they got the forms, but not the substance. I’d have to see it again to remember the specific things. Wonder if I’d have the same opinion-I wasn’t as long out of chedderland as I am now.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynhildr_Budladottir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/25 "2014-03-04T07:56:18Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > I think Marion Ross enjoyed playing a bitch on that. There was an episode of Roseanne where many TV moms made an appearance. Oh yeah, Eric’s grandmother is hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/26 "2014-03-04T13:52:22Z")
This just occurred to me. The kids would have been watching SNL then, so SNL catch phrases would have leaked into their conversations. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/27 "2014-03-04T13:57:18Z")
> [@chappachula](#): > > The original target audience was those of us who actually _were_ teens back in the 70’s. > > No–you are wrong…The date is important. > That’s why they named it “That 70’s show”.(The network could have called it something more general, like “Happy Days in high school” or “The Eric and Donna show”, for example) > > I think the name was a deliberate attempt to attract an older audience—people who would find it not only funny, but also nostalgic, because they had actually been there in the 70’s. > Do I have a cite? well,…no! You’re definitely wrong. The show went through a ton of title changes (“Teenage Wasteland” was the frontrunner for a long time but there were like a half dozen others). But none of the executives could agree, so they just called it “That 70s Show,” which is what they were calling it internally before it had a title. > [@](#): > > They only did this, I think, for the first season. Afterwards, they dropped it. My guess is that they watched the ratings and checked the demographics—and found that the audience was younger than what they had expected.So they started writing more for today’s teens, and not their parents–and then the show became just another sit-com. Again, you’re wrong. These cutaways continued throughout the remainder of the show’s run. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/28 "2014-03-04T17:44:49Z")
I read that the name came from test audiences who were shown pilots for a few different shows, but all anybody talked about afterward was “that 70s show.” Anyway, I love the show. Love it! I overwatched reruns, starting with my local channel 36, which at the time was one of two stations I could watch. The cutaways, parallel conversations, the circle, and the rest were a great break from the standard family three-camera sitcom visuals. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/29 "2014-03-04T17:48:13Z")
Well, even though I was 10 in 1980, the culture in Texas was very slow to change, and I had an older sister who I tagged along with. So I was exposed to a lot of the culture shown in That 70’s show and Dazed and Confused. I think they got it pretty much right. Naturally, the movie was more realistic than the T.V. show. But most of the people I knew from '80-'85 then smoked weed; worshiped Zeppelin, Floyd, AC/DC, ZZ Top and Aerosmith; and had varying lengths of hair. There were muscle cars aplenty, and they were just becoming collectible, so lots were still affordable cars for teenagers. If the Vista Cruiser symbolizes anything, it was the strange cars people seemed to drive around up until about the mid-90’s. When I was in high school, I knew 3 people with Pintos (two with V-8’s), one guy with a V-8 vega, a guy with a sand rail, and another guy with a 440 Police Interceptor (the Blues Brother’s car). Heck, I had a modified '75 Ranchero painted metalflake purple in high school. The V-8 crazies were at least as fast as anyone’s 60’s muscle car when it was stock, and faster than a lot of them even afterward. Either way, for the backward place I was raised in, they read fairly correctly - and they were fun watching either way. > [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#): > > I think the only two real weak links were Midge and Laurie Forman. They weren’t _bad_ but I thought the two characters strained credibility. Uh-Uh, change the accents, make Laurie occasionally less than evil, and it’s pretty much my mom and my sister. The reality wasn’t as funny, but it had its moments. ---
**Author:** ![Bellhorn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@Bellhorn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bellhorn)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/30 "2014-03-04T19:09:24Z")
It must be a generational thing with That _ **70’s Show** _. I guess I’m about 6-7 years older than the kids in the show, and I remember the second half of the 70s as very bleak. I had graduated from a good school with good grades, got a good job with a good company, and then the recession of the mid-70’s hit and my company laid off employees for the first time in their history. Got a second job with a small company that went bankrupt 9 months later. Finally had to take a job in a bleak part of the South. The music was crappy (compared to the music of the 60s and early 70s). And the gas shortages and the soaring price of gas, when you’re stuck driving an old car that guzzles gas. Not to mention how crappy the weed got and how damn expensive it got for complete crap. Not a time I really want to remember. Everything seemed to suck until the 80s dawned. (and as much as I hate Ronnie Ray-gun, the “It’s morning in America” hype had a ring of truth to it. The only thing that rang true about the show was Red being laid off from a good job and his having to scramble to support his family. Really depressing show to me. But props to Kurtwood Smith as Red. And seeing how excellent an actress Mila Kunis turned out to be, damn the show for using her in such an annoying, shallow character. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/31 "2014-03-04T19:45:15Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > \ If you’ll recall “That '80s Show,” it was basically the same show but set in the Reagan years and it went into the toilet, but fast. \ [Hijack] The main character on that, Corey Howard, was played by [Glenn Howerton](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1097351/?ref_=nv_sr_4), who now plays Dennis Reynolds on [It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472954/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_3). [/Hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynhildr_Budladottir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/32 "2014-03-04T21:22:27Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > [Hijack] > The main character on that, Corey Howard, was played by [Glenn Howerton](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1097351/?ref_=nv_sr_4), who now plays Dennis Reynolds on [It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472954/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_3). > [/Hijack] What puzzles me is why That 80s Show couln’t be about teenagers too… ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/33 "2014-03-04T21:25:36Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > Having grown up in Wisconsin (although I was a teen in the early 80’s) they missed how friggin’ cold it is for half the year. 😃 I was living in Wisconsin for part of the show’s run, and it did strike me that the weather seemed way too mild for Wisconsin. In most episodes this didn’t really come up, but I remember one where Red had his annual Veteran’s Day cookout and everyone was standing around outside without jackets on. ---
**Author:** ![Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynhildr_Budladottir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/34 "2014-03-04T21:57:15Z")
> [@Lamia](#): > > I was living in Wisconsin for part of the show’s run, and it did strike me that the weather seemed way too mild for Wisconsin. In most episodes this didn’t really come up, but I remember one where Red had his annual Veteran’s Day cookout and everyone was standing around outside without jackets on. Will have to rewatch it again. I didn’t even notice that. Funny thing is that my parents (well my Dad) have an enormous collection of music from the 70s and my brother and his friends (and I) love to listen to it. In fact, my brother’s friends once came over just to listen to my dad’s music. I’m a little disappointed some of those artists didn’t turn up in the show-- Janis Ian anyone? Another thing which would have been awesome-- _Evita_ technically came out in 1976 (concept album at least). The first production came out just two years later in London-- is the show doing an _Evita_ cutaway. Jackie (Mila Kunis) “singing” Rainbow High, with Eric as Peron and Hyde as Che, would have been hilarious. “I come from the students/they need to adore me/So Christian Dior me/from my head to my toes/I need to be stunning/I need to be Rainbow High/They need a diversion/so do I”. “Don’t cry for me oh Wisconsin…” 😃 “Oh what a circus, oh what a show/Point Place High’s gone to town/over a cheerleader called Jackie Burkhart…” ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/35 "2014-03-04T22:55:58Z")
> [@Morwen Edhelwen](#): > > Will have to rewatch it again. I didn’t even notice that. > > Funny thing is that my parents (well my Dad) have an enormous collection of music from the 70s and my brother and his friends (and I) love to listen to it. In fact, my brother’s friends once came over just to listen to my dad’s music. I’m a little disappointed some of those artists didn’t turn up in the show-- Janis Ian anyone? > > Another thing which would have been awesome-- _Evita_ technically came out in 1976 (concept album at least). The first production came out just two years later in London-- is the show doing an _Evita_ cutaway. Jackie (Mila Kunis) “singing” Rainbow High, with Eric as Peron and Hyde as Che, would have been hilarious. > > “I come from the students/they need to adore me/So Christian Dior me/from my head to my toes/I need to be stunning/I need to be Rainbow High/They need a diversion/so do I”. > > “Don’t cry for me oh Wisconsin…” 😃 > > “Oh what a circus, oh what a show/Point Place High’s gone to town/over a cheerleader called Jackie Burkhart…” You had that all written out before you started the thread and were waiting for just the right time to spring it, weren’t you? ADMIT IT! :D:D Actually, very clever, kudos! This is just a feeling, but: when something like **That '70s Show** starts out, songs can be had for pennies. When it gets very popular, visions of dollar signs start dancing in everyone’s head, which starts bidding up the fees to use the songs. THE DEALS can get very Machiavellian, ergo, fewer songs to use ☹ . ---
**Author:** ![Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynhildr_Budladottir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2014, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/36 "2014-03-04T23:05:06Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > You had that all written out before you started the thread and were waiting for just the right time to spring it, weren’t you? ADMIT IT! :D:D Actually, very clever, kudos! > > This is just a feeling, but: when something like **That '70s Show** starts out, songs can be had for pennies. When it gets very popular, visions of dollar signs start dancing in everyone’s head, which starts bidding up the fees to use the songs. THE DEALS can get very Machiavellian, ergo, fewer songs to use ☹ . You’re probably right. Now I can’t get the image of Hyde singing “Oh What A Circus” out of my head! He actually fits the character a lot more than Fez does with his perpetual political anger/attitude. ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2014, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/37 "2014-03-05T04:56:42Z")
Reminded me of Herman’s Head, of all things. Cast of quirky young up-and-comers with a few respected veterans thrown in, unusual concept, starts out _very_ funny with some truly brilliant moments, not afraid to get weird, highly enjoyable for about the first half of its existence, eventually settles into various conventions, eventually falls into a rut, eventually makes some VERY bad decisions, but manages to leave on a relatively high note and before getting truly execrable. So…a solid thumbs-up. And (you probably saw this coming), I’m going to have to go completely against the consensus on Fez and Laurie. These were the two characters that did not work for me _at all_. Okay, Fez. I could envision a character **starting** as a moronic, pig-ignorant, stumbling, incoherent, constantly embarrassing buffoon being successful, so long as he eventually _grows out of it_, or at least develops some kind of twist. “No! Forget it! I’m through being an embarrassment to others! Which is also why I’m never going to tell you about Kelso’s bizarre addiction to…er…oh, wouldn’t _you_ like to know!” But he never does, and it got freaking old. Along with that “guess the nationality” that wore out its welcome about midway through the first season. As for Laurie…look, I’ll make it real simple. Overbearing twit who gets away with it _most_ of the time and at least serves some purpose (C.M. Burns, Bender, Mayor of Townsville, Bushwhacker Bob, and, yes, Jackie): potentially good. Completely obnoxious, irredeemable eternal Karma Houdini: **freaking dreary**. No, not aggravating, she didn’t even rise to that level. Nobody even tried to make her anything resembling a human being, she was simply a collection of irksome qualities with a face and voice. That “good girl/bad girl” crap just compounded it. Other than that…liked. Yeah, it was good. Not blisteringly witty like early Friends, or endearingly poignant like The Cosby Show, or unrepentantly off-the-wall like Perfect Strangers, but it had top-notch acting (have to agree with everyone who said that Kurtwood Smith and Topher Grace put on a clinic) and really respected the source of material, and…well, I almost never considered it a waste of time. (Heavens, I _do_ use that damning-with-faint-praise thing a lot, don’t I?) The only real surprise for me was that this was what launched Ashton Kucher’s movie career. “Big lovable lunkhead” isn’t exactly a challenging role. ---
**Author:** ![Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Brynhildr\_Budladottir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynhildr_Budladottir)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2014, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/38 "2014-03-05T07:50:02Z")
> [@DKW](#): > > Reminded me of Herman’s Head, of all things. Cast of quirky young up-and-comers with a few respected veterans thrown in, unusual concept, starts out _very_ funny with some truly brilliant moments, not afraid to get weird, highly enjoyable for about the first half of its existence, eventually settles into various conventions, eventually falls into a rut, eventually makes some VERY bad decisions, but manages to leave on a relatively high note and before getting truly execrable. So…a solid thumbs-up. > > And (you probably saw this coming), I’m going to have to go completely against the consensus on Fez and Laurie. These were the two characters that did not work for me _at all_. Okay, Fez. I could envision a character **starting** as a moronic, pig-ignorant, stumbling, incoherent, constantly embarrassing buffoon being successful, so long as he eventually _grows out of it_, or at least develops some kind of twist. “No! Forget it! I’m through being an embarrassment to others! Which is also why I’m never going to tell you about Kelso’s bizarre addiction to…er…oh, wouldn’t _you_ like to know!” But he never does, and it got freaking old. Along with that “guess the nationality” that wore out its welcome about midway through the first season. As for Laurie…look, I’ll make it real simple. Overbearing twit who gets away with it _most_ of the time and at least serves some purpose (C.M. Burns, Bender, Mayor of Townsville, Bushwhacker Bob, and, yes, Jackie): potentially good. Completely obnoxious, irredeemable eternal Karma Houdini: **freaking dreary**. No, not aggravating, she didn’t even rise to that level. Nobody even tried to make her anything resembling a human being, she was simply a collection of irksome qualities with a face and voice. That “good girl/bad girl” crap just compounded it. > > Other than that…liked. Yeah, it was good. Not blisteringly witty like early Friends, or endearingly poignant like The Cosby Show, or unrepentantly off-the-wall like Perfect Strangers, but it had top-notch acting (have to agree with everyone who said that Kurtwood Smith and Topher Grace put on a clinic) and really respected the source of material, and…well, I almost never considered it a waste of time. (Heavens, I _do_ use that damning-with-faint-praise thing a lot, don’t I?) > > The only real surprise for me was that this was what launched Ashton Kucher’s movie career. “Big lovable lunkhead” isn’t exactly a challenging role. On Fez: My own idea was that Fez was making half of the stuff about his home country up and exaggerating the other half to impress people. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2014, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/39 "2014-03-05T08:06:38Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > I’m not threadshitting, but I disagree. I WAS a Wisconsin teenager in the late 70’s, and I thought the show got a lot of it wrong. I tried to watch, but gave up early because of the ‘errors’, so take my opinion for what it’s worth. I guess it is like doctors watching doctor shows, etc. I can’t comment on Wisconsin specific stuff, but I think it did a great job of capturing the '70s. But… > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Now, on the other hand, _Dazed and Confused_ was so spot on to my high school experience\* that, when I watched it with a HS friend, we both ‘recognized’ classmates in the movie. > > \*except the pot smoking. In the movie, EVERYONE smoked, and it wasn’t universal in my school …_Dazed and Confused_ really really nailed it. Except for the hazing, D&C is a perfect representation my experience. I knew all of those people too. Still might be my favorite Linklater movie. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2014, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740/40 "2014-03-05T20:45:09Z")
> [@DKW](#): > > The only real surprise for me was that this was what launched Ashton Kucher’s movie career. “Big lovable lunkhead” isn’t exactly a challenging role. Really? It sure worked for John Travolta. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/that-70s-show-discussion-thread/682740.md?page=3)